JOHOR BARU: A 41-year-old man has been arrested for lodging a false police report, alleging that his four children had gone missing.
Iskandar Puteri OCPD Asst Comm M. Kumarasan said the man lodged the report at around 2.40am on Thursday (Oct 17).
“The man claimed that his four children, aged two to eight, had gone missing in Mutiara Rini.
“Based on the information he provided, we launched a search to track down the children but could not find them as the man failed to show us the exact location where they were last seen.
“We also found inconsistencies in his statement,” ACP Kumarasan said in a statement on Thursday (Oct 17).
Investigations then led the police to discover that the man’s four children were safe at his wife’s house.
“The man, which we have named as a suspect, was said to have always neglected his children.
“He also has debts, which led him to lodge a false police report about his missing children as he was worried that his debtors would look for the kids following his failure to pay up,” he added.
Asked whether the suspect was staying with his wife, ACP Kumarasan said police were still investigating the matter.
The suspect has been placed under remand until Friday (Oct 18) to aid in investigations under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001, which carries a jail term of up to 20 years or maximum fine of RM50,000 for child neglect.
He is also being investigated under Section 182 of the Penal Code for lodging a false report, which is punishable with a jail sentence of up to six months and a maximum fine of RM2,000.
ACP Kumarasan urged the people not to lodge a false report as it is against the law and could lead to public unrest.
